A Good Challenge

When I got back from abroad everyone asked "How was it? Was Africa so much fun!" After making it clear I could not comment on Africa but could tell them about the places I had visited in Cameroon, I also corrected their notion of study abroad as "fun". Being in Cameroon was challenging, lonely, tiring, boring, far from home....and taught me so much about the legacy of colonialism that I have been benefiting from. Everyday I was witnessing something new and wrestling with it. This all sounds pretty daunting and cynical right? But I don't want to tell you I had this "amazing African adventure" or that now I can't wait to go back and work for some development organization. I left Cameroon with more unanswered questions than when I arrived. But I think this is GREAT! My host families were all unique and different, incredibly generous and welcoming, and humbly opened up their homes to me. I embraced being American for the first time while abroad, through coming to a better understanding of the culture I came from. I also saw a lot of strength and dignity in Cameroonian culture that was very different from where I come from and very different than the media portrayal we see of Sub-Saharan African countries. I would highly recommend this program to everyone. It does not try to make you a tourist but it also acknowledges that with your western-background you cannot fully assimilate into Cameroon, it's a good balance. A good challenge.